Page 47 of Bad Boy Bachelor Christmas
“Does it get old?” she asked.
“What?”
“The small-town nosiness.” She turned her back to the window and crossed her arms. I fought valiantly not to look at the way it pressed her breasts together, like they were kissing. “Everyone knows your business and thinks it’s okay to—I don’t know…” She trailed off, shaking her head. “Never mind. I suppose I’m being just as bad as them, bringing things up.”
“You’re not.”
The corner of her mouth curled in a half-smile. “Do you ever want to tell them to just fuck off?”
I laughed. “All the time. But it wouldn’t get me anywhere. Believe me. I’ve tried.”
“Oh?”
“It’s better to be silent and grieving than angry and grieving. The latter makes everyone even more curious. They want to fix things. I learned a long time ago it was more about making themselves comfortable than sparing me.”
She sighed, and when I stepped up beside her, she turned back to the window and surprised me by resting her head against my shoulder. Not upon, because she was too short, but against. “Death makes people uncertain. Unsure. They don’t know how to navigate it. I suppose their hearts are in the right place, but it would drive me crazy to be reminded at every turn that I was the widower in town.” She lifted her head from my shoulder and balked at her own comment. “Oh my gosh, I’m sorry, that was rude, I was just—”
“Don’t worry,” I said. “It’s nice to have someone who will speak freely. There is no wrong thing to say. No right thing, either. They’re just words.”
Her head returned to my shoulder. The sounds of the party at our backs filled our ears, and the reflections of guests danced across the window.
“Is Christmas harder than other days?” she asked softly.
“Yes and no. Veronica loved Christmas, so sometimes it makes me feel closer to her. Other times it makes me feel…” I trailed off and shook my head. “It’s been nice having you here, Winter.”
She reached down, and her dainty fingers intertwined with mine. “It’s been nice being here. Minus the coyote standoff.”
I chuckled. “You could’ve taken him.”
With a snicker, she held up her free hand and balled it into the tiniest fist I’d ever seen. “My dad taught me how to throw a mean right hook. That crazy animal was messing with the wrong chick. He’s lucky you showed up and scared him off.”
“I bet you had him shaking in his fur.”
“Like a little bitch.”
Both of us descended into laughter, and I caught our reflection in the window and didn’t recognize myself. It had been a long time since I laughed like this with anyone, let alone a woman and let alone at a party. Veronica had been the one to drag me out of my shell and force me to socialize. After I lost her, I retreated back to my introverted ways—back to where I was most comfortable. But Winter?
She made me feel like that man again.
She gave my hand a little tug. “Come on, let’s grab another one of those cranberry things. Oh, and maybe you could introduce me to the man in the blue suit? Justin said he owned the main hotel in town and that he’s considering a makeover in the next year. Could be a good job to add to my portfolio.”
We made our rounds of the party. Winter shook even more hands and charmed the pants off everyone who was lucky enough to find themselves in her company. I stood by her, watching her work—because that was what this was, a hustle—and admired how she held people captive by her radiance, quick wit, and endearing sense of humor.
Shortly before midnight, I was about to pull her outside and take her home when Justin came hurrying over to where we stood with Cami and announced that he just got an offer on the house.
“That’s fantastic!” Cami popped him in the arm.
He flinched and rubbed at his tricep. “So long as the owners accept it.”
“Call them,” Winter encouraged.
“It’s late,” he said.
“Call them,” Winter said again, this time more forcefully. “They wanted the sale before Christmas, right? Pass along the information as soon as you have it. Let’s make this a night really worth celebrating.”
CHAPTER22
WINTER
